Old topic, but new thought?

NQ1965

NQ1965

PR Elite
Title's, Titles, Titles....We've covered all of this before.

Wife and I have been wheeling and dealing lately on bikes for the grandkids.
Bought one with a title on Thursday. Discussed purchase of another from a craigslist seller today that is on it's 2nd owner, but doesn't have a title. (2014 bike).

In the other KX350 Two stroke post, I made mention of a customer came into a local dealer seeking a quality used 125 dirt bike. They had none.

The thought occurred to me this evening about how many times that dealers probably have to refuse trade-ins due to title transfer issues, or bike's without titles at all?

Especially older two strokes?
 
I know the local guy won’t take a trade in unless it has a title. If it’s a 2014 where’s the title? If you think about it a lot of young kids who finance bikes do so for five years. A 14 with no title probably has a loan on it still.
 
Not sure about a 14 year old with no title, but I have sold bikes without a title. The last two I sold had titles when I bought them but over the years I had misplaced them. Sold the bike with no issues anyway. However knowing I had the titles somewhere I took the buys contact info and when I found the title to the KTM some 4 or 5 months later I sent it to them. Missing titles happen.

Best way to protect yourself is not to buy a bike for a price without a title that has a price too good to be true. Its probably stolen. Also check with the local PD or maybe BMV to see if they will check VIN for stolen. I know it doesn't help if the bike that was stolen was never registered but if your not comfortable, move to the next one.

Like NQ1965 I am starting to look at bikes for my two grand kids. Do these people think these things are made of gold? Some prices are ridiculous. 2 strokes, pee wee bikes and, small trail bikes. Good thing I have time to shop around.
 
When you run a bike through any Ohio PD it’s only an Ohio check. So if it was stolen in any other state you wouldn’t know. For me personally, no title no deal. I also don’t do the”I have a loan on it I’ll pay it off and get back to you” game. People are shady, and you never know what could happen.
 
No title in Ohio anymore would be a deal breaker. Too hard to sell a bike without the title these days Just pay the damn taxes and get the title. Years ago I bought numerous bikes out of state so I didnt pay taxes, but that was before Ohio issued titles. You just got your Manufacturer's Certificate of Orgin.

And if buying used and they have a lien on the bike, always go to the bank and pay that lien off with your purchase so you know hes not going to default on the loan Hell I knew a guy who owned money on a previous bike that was gone and took out another loan on a dirt bike

For all you young guys out there If you pay on a dirt bike for more than say 24 month, you should reconsider the purchase until you save some more money.
 
Yea, I've learned the hard way as well on the title issue. Once you've run into a title snag, you get a little wise to it all.

TB018, you mentioned that you send the buyer the misplaced title later after you find it.
The problem that I have run into with that is that the "Title Transfer" still has to be notarized. I don't know about you guys, but around here it has become extremely difficult to find a Notary that will stamp and sign the title without having both the Seller and the Buyer parties present. More than once I have gotten the "uh....No. Not gonna do that" from a Notary.

When I make contact with a seller, and this has been with Craigslist and ebay, I usually start the conversation with:
1st) is the bike still for sale?
2nd) Do you presently hold the title and can you arrange a Notary when I come and look at it, if we can agree on a purchase?

When I have sold bikes and cars, I have two Notaries that I have used, and both are very conveniently close to me. The first one is at the Heath City Building/Police Dept, and the second is at my bank, which is only a 5 minute trip in the car. And the bank is open on Saturdays.

On this Craigslist 2014 bike, after the seller stated that he is the second owner and that there is no title, I emailed back, that if the bike was originally sold here in Ohio, then it does have a title. And that Ohio has required dirt bike titles since 1998. But I also reassured him that he won't have any difficulty selling it either way, because it is in "Like New" condition and hardly used. Somebody will buy it.

More than once I've cringed walking out of the Licking County Title Bureau office after the sting of Tax's Due. But that title is the only proof I may have that I actually bought this bike, fair and square, and that it belongs to me....if it comes up missing, stolen and then recovered.

But can you guys remember the days when you went to a motorcycle dealer and their line of used dirt bikes along the wall was as long as their new bikes for sale?

Or worse yet, how many good old 2-strokes are getting scrapped and parted out because of title's.
 
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It is actually illegal to sell a bike in Ohio without a title, regardless of the year. Yes, you read that correctly, REGARDLESS OF YEAR. If it is a bike with manufacture year pre-1999 you are supposed to go to the title bureau and have a title generated for the bike in order to legally sell it in Ohio. There are various methods by which to have a title created.

You can search Ohio for title here. This will not divulge personal information, but will simply show whether or not the VIN is titled in Ohio.

https://services.dps.ohio.gov/BMVOnlineServices/Search/Title
 
I did find out that if you purchase a bike from NY that only has an MCO, you can still get it titled in Ohio. All you need is a signed bill of sale and proof that there is no lein or a fax from bank stating that the loan has been satisfied. This only works while buying a dirt bike from a state that does not require a dirt bike to be titled.
 
My 144s origin was South Carolina. Never was titled. So I titled it with a notarized bill of sale. To figure this out I had my Yamaha shop look the vin up. Then I checked again with this website:

https://www.nicb.org/vincheck

All came back clean. Purchased. And titled it. It’s not fool proof. But my stolen 250s vin is in that registry.

My 95 cr250 had no title. That one was easy. Sworn affidavit signature. And got a title.
 
TB018 said:
Not sure about a 14 year old with no title, but I have sold bikes without a title. The last two I sold had titles when I bought them but over the years I had misplaced them. Sold the bike with no issues anyway. However knowing I had the titles somewhere I took the buys contact info and when I found the title to the KTM some 4 or 5 months later I sent it to them. Missing titles happen.
Click to expand...

If you lost the title and the bike is in your name you can go to the title bureau and get a replacement title.
 
Vet261 said:
It is actually illegal to sell a bike in Ohio without a title, regardless of the year. Yes, you read that correctly, REGARDLESS OF YEAR. If it is a bike with manufacture year pre-1999 you are supposed to go to the title bureau and have a title generated for the bike in order to legally sell it in Ohio. There are various methods by which to have a title created.

You can search Ohio for title here. This will not divulge personal information, but will simply show whether or not the VIN is titled in Ohio.

https://services.dps.ohio.gov/BMVOnlineServices/Search/Title
Click to expand...



So I wonder what type of cases would bring about enforcement and punishment of this law?
Would love to see more criminal specifications brought against the P.O.S. criminals out there ripping bikes off.

I got an email back, the guy with the 2014 bike sold his.
 
Not sure about running a title at a local PD and it only showing Ohio stolen. Twice I have had bike come back to me after selling them.

One was my sons RM 80. Sold it, and about 4 years later I got a call from Vermillion P.D. asking if I ever owned the RM 80. I sold the bike with title, the people I sold it to, or someone after that must have had it stolen. I got it back as the last registered owner.

Before that I sold an 04 KX250f with a title. Some years later I got a call from California Highway Patrol. They had found my bike, or parts of it in California and asked if I wanted it. I let them keep it.

A title will always protect you, and yes you can get replacement titles at the BMV.
 
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